To Live or Not To Live
by emikohayashi4912
Summary: When Alonzo is severely injured, he has the choice of either joining his family and former mate Cassandra in the Heavyside Layer or staying alive to stay with his sister Jemima and his friends. Which will he choose? Rated T because I'm paranoid.
1. Prologue

Pouncival stared at the scene before him.

It had happened so fast, it was hard to believe it happened at all. He had heard stories about accidents like these and how they seemed to occur in slow motion. The actual accident had taken merely a second to occur, but the sights and sounds seemed make the accident longer, like thick molasses dripping out from a bottle.

As Plato bounded out across the gravel road, a shrill horn and the squealing of rubber tire against gravel filled Pouncival's ears. He could see the car skidding from side to side, the human inside trying to control the vehicle. He saw the faint reddish-orange sparks that were caused by the friction from the tires. He saw the frightened face of Plato as he leapt out of the way. And he saw the fear-stricken face of Alonzo as the car made contact with his body, staining his black and white fur with a shade of crimson red.

And then, the human drove off as if nothing had happened at all.

It took a while for Pouncival to take in what had happened, but then, reality hit him smack in the face.

"ALONZO!"


	2. Chapter 1

This is my interpretation of the Heavyside Layer.

If Old Deuteronomy chooses a cat to go the Heavyside Layer, that cat is reborn. If a cat dies, they are sent to the Heavyside Layer and stay there.

I don't own anything.

"Great Heavyside, is he alive?"

"I don't know, he's not moving!"

"Is he dead?"

Alonzo grumbled. "Five more minutes," he mumbled, turning on his side, attempting to drown out the voices.

"ALOOOOOOOONZOOOOOOOOO! I'M SOOOORYYYYYYYYY!"

The loud and sudden apology caused Alonzo to bolt upright. "Wha-whuh-huh?" he spluttered, looking around. He was in front of the Jellicle Junkyard, and in front of him was Pouncival, Plato, Tumblebrutus, and Admetus. Pouncival was sobbing into Plato's shoulder while Tumblebrutus and Admetus attempted to comfort him.

"Guys, what happened?" asked Alonzo, but they ignored him, as if he wasn't even there. Alonzo tried to remember. They were playing tag in front of the Junkyard and Plato tried to tag Pouncival, but a car came out of nowhere and...

Alonzo's eyes widened.

The car missed Plato and hit Alonzo.

"Hello Alonzo," a voice behind him whispered. Alonzo turned around to face a dark gray queen, and a beige tabby tom. Alonzo gulped and answered.

"Hello Mom, Dad."

Alonzo's parents, Sasarada and Orion, had both died when he was still a kit. Alonzo was watching one of Mistoffelees's magic shows when he had heard from Jellylorum that his owner's house had burned down, and his parents were both in the house at the time.

"ALONZO!" screamed a female voice behind him and Alonzo turned around. A mass of white and dark brown fur collided with him, knocking him off his feet.  
The cat that had just jumped on the black and white tom bounced off, and Alonzo recognized the brown-faced white queen. It was his sister, Silhouette, who was murdered by a Pollicle around 4 years ago.

"Well, well, well, look who just joined the party," murmured a voice from behind Alonzo, and he turned to see his black and white patched brother, Tavarius, who drowned last year.

"What are you all doing here?" Alonzo asked, smiling. Sasarada smiled a sad smile and pointed behind Alonzo. Alonzo turned to see his body, limp on the ground and stained with red.

"So, I'm dead, right?" he asked, looking back up at his family.

Silhouette shook her head. "Not yet," she replied. "You're still alive, but barely. That car that hit you caused some major damage."

"Then what are my chances for survival?" Alonzo asked again.

Orion replied, "That, my son, is up to you."


	3. Chapter 2

I don't own CATS.

Confused, Alonzo asked, "What do you mean, up to me?"

"Accidents like these give you a choice. You're not fully dead yet, but close to it; think of this as something like a coma," replied Silhouette. "You can choose to die and join us in the Heavyside Layer, or you could stay alive to stay with our sister Jemima and your friends."

Jemima was Alonzo's only remaining family member, and if he were to die, she would be left all alone.

Explaining his dilemma to his family, Tavarius chuckled. "Thought you would say that. You don't have to come with us, you know. You can always stay alive and join us later," he stated.

"So, what's the catch?"

Tavarius looked confused. "Say what?"

"There's always some kind of catch when you say stuff like that."

Tavarius laughed. "Why do you think that?"

Alonzo snorted. "I'm your brother. Of course I know." Alonzo repeated his question. "What's the catch?"

Sasarada sighed. "The thing is," she began, "If an accident of this magnitude were to happen again, then you wouldn't survive. That's exactly what happened to your father and-"

"Alonzo?"

Alonzo's mother was interrupted by the astonished voice of a queen. Turning around, he saw a sleek and slim copper queen that he hadn't seen in a year since her owners had moved to France. His breath caught in his throat.

"Cassandra?" he whispered.

The black and white tom saw his former mate's eyes welled up with tears as she glomped him.

"Great Everlasting Cat, I thought I would never see you again," Alonzo murmured into Cassandra's shoulder as they embraced. From the corner of his eye, Alonzo could see his family backing away and disappearing, allowing him to have some privacy with his former mate.

"What happened?" asked Alonzo. "Why are you here?"

"The plane to France...it crash landed," replied Cassandra, her voice wavering ever so slightly.

"You mean you never even made it to your new house?"

Cassandra shook her head and nuzzled Alonzo.

"I thought I'd never see you again," she purred into Alonzo's ear. Pulling away, she asked, "So, what happened to you? And why are you here?"

Alonzo explained his dilemma to Cassandra, and the queen nodded slowly. "So, have you made your choice yet?" she asked.

Alonzo shook his head.

"It's just...I want to be with you and my family, but at the same time I can't let Jemima be alone. It's bad enough we don't have any parents, but without me, she won't have any family in the junkyard."

The black and white tom looked back at the copper queen, whose moonlit eyes were filling up with tears. Alonzo gulped. "Hey, c'mon, it's not gonna be that bad, I'm gonna be back...someday..."

Cassandra cut him off. "Yeah, I know, I understand. Completely. It's just..." she hesitated. "It's just that I'd always pictured us together as mates with kits, but with me...here and you living, it's never gonna happen."

The queen buried her face in Alonzo's shoulder and he felt her tears soak his fur. Then she pulled away.

"I'll miss you," Cassandra whispered.

Alonzo dipped his head. "I'll miss you too," he murmured, and their noses touched for one last time.

"Are you ready?"

Turning around, Alonzo saw Sasarada, Orion, Tavarius, and Silhouette. Sasarada held out her paw. Alonzo padded towards her.

"Yes."

He took his mother's hand in his and looked back at Cassandra. Cassandra waved and Alonzo waved back.

Sasarada led Alonzo into the gate of the Jellicle Junkyard. He was met by cats everywhere, most of which were crowded around Jennyanydots's den. Maneuvering around the cats, the two of them made their way to the den. There they saw Alonzo's body, which was wrapped up ivory white bandages, faintly stained with red.

"Place your paw on your chest," instructed Sasarada, and Alonzo did so. The following sensation was as if all the sights, sounds, and smells were mashed into a blender and mixed together, creating a muggy whirlwind of senses, which eventually faded into darkness.

Meh. I suck at writing sappy romance stuff.


End file.
